The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is the custodian and administrator of important public obligations to those who served this Nation. The VA's regulatory responsibility is almost solely confined to carrying out the mandate of the laws enacted by Congress relating to programs for veterans and their beneficiaries. VA's major regulatory objective is to implement these laws with fairness, justice, and efficiency.
Most of the regulations issued by the VA involve three VA components: the Veterans Benefits Administration, the Veterans Health Administration, and the National Cemetery System. The basic goal of the Veterans Benefits Administration is to provide high-quality and timely nonmedical benefits to eligible veterans and their beneficiaries. The principal goal of the Veterans Health Administration is to provide high-quality health care on a timely basis to eligible veterans through its system of medical centers, nursing homes, domiciliaries, and outpatient medical and dental facilities. The National Cemetery System's primary mission is to bury eligible veterans, members of the Reserve components, and their dependents in VA National Cemeteries and to maintain those cemeteries as national shrines in perpetuity as a final tribute of a grateful Nation to honor the memory and service of those who served in the Armed Forces.